Independent directors of ENRC are engaged in a last-ditch attempt to get a
higher bid from investors controlling the mining group and win the backing
of a key shareholder.

They have commissioned advisers to provide a detailed valuation assessment in an effort to persuade the three oligarch founders that the group is worth more than the £3.3bn tag they have placed on the business.

Support from Kazakhmys, another mining group operating in Kazakhstan with a 26pc stake in ENRC, is seen as crucial to their efforts to get a better deal. The group is unhappy with the sighting shot from the consortium and will not make a decision until a formal offer has been tabled.

It is being argued that the valuations being carried out separately by advisers Lazard and Credit Suisse will do nothing to add real value to a group gripped by scandal and facing a Serious Fraud Office investigation as well as the loss of sensitive details about staff.

Mohsen Khalid, former World Bank director who heads the independent committee, is anxious to demonstrate that the group is worth more than the 260p a share offer on the table, but analysts say support from Kazakhmys will strengthen his hand.

The three oligarchs need the 26pc stake to push their holding above the 75pc stake that is required to end ENRC’s London listing.